‹ Australian Award CalculatorsFREE CALCULATOR · MA000004

Retail Award Pay Calculator

Work out what a week under the Retail Award actually pays — the right classification level, evening and weekend penalties, casual loading and super, calculated the way the award says.

How the Retail Award is applied

Minimum rates are set per classification level — the calculator uses the adult rates from Table 4, current from the first full pay period on or after 1 July 2026.
Casuals get a 25% loading, and the evening/weekend percentages below already include it.
Ordinary hours after 6pm Monday–Friday attract a 125% penalty (150% casual) — the one retail employers most often miss.
Overtime applies beyond 38 ordinary weekly hours: 150% for the first 3 hours, then 200% (casuals: 175% / 225%).
A 12-hour break is required between shifts — work again sooner and every hour is payable at 200% until the break is taken.
Superannuation (12%) applies to ordinary-time earnings, including penalty rates — but not to overtime.

Who the award covers

Shops selling or hiring goods — clothing, food, furniture, household and recreational goods
Bakery shops and household-equipment repair services
Departmental and general stores
Newspaper delivery by newsagent employees
Labour hire staff placed into retail businesses

Community pharmacies, hair and beauty salons, stand-alone butchers, fast food and motor vehicle retailing have their own awards — check before you classify.

Which level is your team member?

The Retail Award has one classification ladder with eight levels — and one golden rule, straight from Schedule A: classify by the level of competency and skill the person is required to exercise, not the duties on their position description. Most retail teams sit at Levels 1–4; the levels above are for genuine management and specialist roles.

Level	Per hour	Per week (38h)	Typical roles	The test
Level 1	$27.81	$1056.80	Shop assistant · Check-out operator · Store worker · Window dresser (unqualified)	The entry level: selling, stocking shelves, wrapping, delivering, demonstrating goods and helping customers.
Level 2	$28.45	$1081.00	Forklift operator · Ride-on equipment operator	Working at a higher skill level than Level 1 — typically plant/equipment tickets.
Level 3	$28.89	$1097.80	Senior salesperson · 2IC to a department manager · Opening/closing keyholder	Trusted with supervision support, opening or closing the store, securing cash — or working alone running a small shop.
Level 4	$29.45	$1119.10	Assistant/deputy shop manager · Qualified tradesperson (butcher, baker, florist) · Nightfill supervisor	Managing a section, supervising up to 4 staff, buying with discretion — or trade-qualified (Certificate III) and using those skills. The award’s “standard rate”.
Level 5	$30.66	$1165.10	Tradesperson in charge of other trades · Service supervisor (15+ staff)	A step above Level 4: leading other qualified staff or supervising a large service team.
Level 6	$31.11	$1182.10	Department manager (5+ staff) · Duty manager · 2IC of a store with departments	Running a department or duty-managing a store, with real people responsibility.
Level 7	$32.67	$1241.40	Visual merchandiser (Diploma) · Senior clerical (Level 4 clerical)	Specialist or senior administrative work needing only limited guidance.
Level 8	$33.99	$1291.80	Shop manager of a store with departments	The top level: full store management, possibly Diploma-qualified.

Level 1 is broad by design — selling, stocking, check-out, deliveries and customer help all live here. Don’t over-classify routine work, and don’t under-classify trust.
The jump to Level 3 is about responsibility: keyholding (opening/closing), securing cash, backing up a manager, or running a shop alone.
Certificate III changes the floor: a trade-qualified butcher, baker or florist who uses those skills most of the week must be at least Level 4.
Team size matters at the top: a department manager with 5 or more staff (including themselves) is Level 6; the manager of a store with departments is Level 8.

Allowances that can apply on top

Base rates and penalties aren’t the whole pay picture. The Retail Award adds allowances for particular duties and situations — being the designated first aid officer, working overtime without notice, using your own car. They’re small lines individually, but they’re legal entitlements and they add up. The common ones (1 July 2026 amounts):

First aid allowance — the designated first aid officer (current qualification)$14.55/week

Meal allowance — overtime beyond an hour without 24 hours’ notice$24.56 first meal · $22.27 second (overtime past 4 hours)

Laundry allowance — required special clothing$6.42/week full-time · $1.28 per shift part-time or casual

Cold work allowance — cold chamber or refrigerated storage$0.38/hour, plus $0.59/hour below 0°C

Liquor licence allowance — employee holds the licence$34.69/week

Motor vehicle allowance — own car used for work$1.00/km

Recall to workMinimum 3 hours’ pay per recall

Annual leave loading17.5% on paid annual leave

The calculator below doesn’t include allowances — add the ones that apply to your team on top of the result. The full list lives in the award’s allowances clause.

Break entitlements under the Retail Award

Breaks are part of the award too — and missed or worked-through breaks usually carry a penalty rate, so they belong in the roster, not just the tea room. Here’s what the Retail Award requires:

Shift under 4 hoursNo break entitlement

Shift of 4–5 hoursOne paid 10-minute rest break

Shift of 5–7 hoursOne paid 10-minute rest break · one unpaid meal break of 30–60 minutes

Shift of 7–10 hoursTwo paid 10-minute rest breaks (one each half of the shift) · one unpaid meal break of 30–60 minutes

Shift over 10 hoursTwo paid 10-minute rest breaks · two unpaid meal breaks of 30–60 minutes each

No one can work more than 5 hours straight without a meal break, and shiftworkers’ meal breaks are paid (clause 26). The full rules live in clause 16 of the award.

Calculate a week under the Retail Award

Enter the week as it’s actually rostered. Weekend, evening and public-holiday hours are paid at the award’s penalty rates; anything beyond 38 hours is priced as overtime; super is applied to ordinary-time earnings only.

Classification levelEmployment typeState or territoryWeekday hours (before 6pm)Weekday evening hours (after 6pm)Ordinary hours worked after 6pm Monday–FridaySaturday hoursSunday hoursPublic holiday hours

Rates current as of 1 July 2026 (adult minimums, MA000004) — first full pay period on or after that date.

This week’s numbers

Nothing is stored or sent — the maths runs on this page.

Are these the exact legal rates?

The classification minimums are the adult rates from the award (Table 4), current at 1 July 2026. Junior rates (under 21) are a percentage of these, and shiftworkers have a separate penalty table. Treat the result as a planning number and confirm against the award or your payroll adviser.

What’s the difference between Level 1 and Level 3?

Responsibility. Both might spend the day serving customers — but the Level 3 employee holds keys, secures the cash, supervises in the manager’s absence or runs the shop alone. The award’s own principle: classify the competency required, not the task list.

Do I owe a penalty for Thursday late-night trading?

Yes — any ordinary hours after 6pm Monday to Friday are paid at 125% (150% for casuals). It applies every weeknight, not just late-night trading nights.

Does super apply to penalty rates?

Yes — evening, weekend and public-holiday penalties on ordinary hours are ordinary-time earnings, so the 12% super guarantee applies. True overtime is excluded. The calculator applies exactly that split.

This is a general calculator, not legal advice. It applies the award’s published adult minimums to the hours you enter — it can’t see your enterprise agreement, allowances or individual arrangements, and junior, apprentice and shiftwork rates differ. Always confirm pay against the award, your agreement or your adviser. If you believe something here is materially wrong or out of date, please contact us — we’ll review it promptly.

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Tommy applies the right award rates to every shift as you roster — penalties, loading and super included. Start with your email and your numbers come along.